Method of processing textile slivers



Jan. 4, 1966 J. E. JOHNSON METHOD OF PROCESSING TEXTILE SLIVERS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 28, 1963 JAMES ELWOOOJOHHSOH ATTQ II I

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/ AMES ELwoouJonnson ATTORNEY United States Patent This invention relates to amethod and apparatus for processing textile slivers and more especially to a system of handling and packaging sliver strands emerging from and/or passing into various types of sliver processing machinery.

It is an object of this invention to provide a sliver processing method wherein the sliver strands emerging from finisher drawing processes are subjected directly to the spinning process, omitting the conventional intermediate roving process.

It is another object of invention to provide a method of the class described wherein sliver strands are introduced to the rolls of a spinning frame with the free ends of the strand fibers pointing longitudinally of the strand and in the same general direction that these fibers previously pointed when emerging from the carding apparatus. This elfect is obtained by introducing the sliver strand emerging from an odd process to the spinning rolls, beginning with the first or odd carding process.

It is another object of invention to provide a method in which the sliver strand emerging from one sliver processing machine is received, packaged, and subsequently dispensed or fed to a subsequent processing machine, including the spinning frame, in a novel manner and with out employing conventional sliver cans.

It is another object of invention to provide in combination with sliver processing machines, a novel method of and apparatus for handling sliver strands wherein the strands are respectively coiled into laps and the laps are helically wound into cylindrical packages, eachpackage being of substantially uniform density throughout to thereby prevent matting, marrying, or felting of the fibers in the sliver strands.

It is another object of invention to provide a method such as described in the preceding paragraph in which the wound package consists of a continuous laminated layer composed of a re-usable strip or beltand a lap of coils whereby the belt will serve to hold the successive helical turns of the package in spaced relation to one another to avoid adherence between the fibers of successive helical lap turns and to bind the latter into a package.

It is another object. of invention to provide a novel method of handling sliver strands emerging from or passing into sliver processing machines, which method eliminates false draft in the strand and produces a superior and more uniform product than heretofore produced in conventional processes.

It is still another object of invention to providea novel method and apparatus for feeding sliver strandsto sliver,

- processing machines wherein the sliver strand is first formed into a lap of uniformly arranged coils, and these coils are successively extended during feeding concurrently with bodily advancement of the uncoiled lap toward a processing machines for successively carding, breaker drawing, finisher drawing, and spinning the sliver;

3,226,925 Patented Jan. 4, 1966 FIGURE 2 is a plan view of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 2A is a schematic View of a sliver strand showing the direction in which the slivers therein extend when emerging from the carding process;

FIGURE 28 is a view similar to FIGURE 2A showing the direction of fiber extension as the strand emerges from the breaker drawing process;

FIGURE 20 is a view similar to FIGURE 2B but showing the direction of fiber extension again reversed corresponding to the position when emerging from the finisher drawing process;

FIGURE 3 is a detailed plan view illustrating the manner of coiling a sliver strand into a lap, and then helically winding the lap into a package when the strand emerges from the carding, breaker drawing, and the finisher drawing machines;

FIGURE 4 is a view taken along line 4-4 in FIG- URE 3 the coiler head and the respective unwinding and take-up arbors being shown in vertical section;

FIGURE 5 is a schematic view illustrating a conventional system of processing slivers, employing a series of machines designed to accomplish substantially the end result of the machines shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, and

FIGURES 5A through 5D schematically illustrate the respective directions of fiber extension as the strand emerges from the first four processes illustrated in FIG- URE 5.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, the numerals 10, 11, 12 and 13 respectively designate a carding, a breaker drawing, a finisher drawing, and a spinning machine, which machines are arranged in an order suitable for processing textile slivers in accordance with the present invention (FIGURES 1 and 2).

A web. of sliver 15 passes from dolfer cylinder 16 of carding machine 10, between calender rolls 17 Where it is condensed into a strand or rope 18, and then into a coiler head 20 or equivalent strand traversing mechanism as at 21. From point 21, the strand 18 passes downwardly between rolls 22 (FIGURE 4), and through diagonally disposed tube of coiler plate 25, said plate being rotatably mounted as at 26 in the coiler head 20 and having gear teeth 27 by which it is rotated in a conventional manner. As plate 25 rotates, the eccentrically disposed lower end of tube 24 will deposit the strand 18 therebelow in the form of an elongated lap 23 of coils or windings 19 which are supported by a belt or strip 28 winding the lap 23 and the strip 28 into package or roll 32 so that the strip will bind the lap into a firm package while maintahiing the successive helical lap turns in spaced relation to one another.

As shown in FIGURE 2 of the drawings, the package .32 contains a plurality of parallel laps of sliver coils 19,

each lap emanating from a separate carding machine strand 1S and all of the laps being bound by a single strip 28. If desired, however, the laps 19 may be individually wrapped.

Since the sliver coils or windings 19 are untwisted and easily damaged or broken, it is highly important that protection be afforded from uneven stresses Within the package or against linear stresses as it is withdrawn from the package in subsequent processes. The above-described method of forming the strand into a lap of coils and then winding the lap, along with a strip, into package 32 protects the sliver against such uneven internal stresses which cause matting, marrying and felting of the fibers. Linear tensile stress in the strand 18 is avoided by uncoiling the lap coils 19 reversely of their direction of coiling concurrently with advancement of the uncoiled portion of the lap as a unit toward uncoiling position and in timed relation to the linear travel of the extended coil.

In order to wind the package 32 at the delivery side of carding machine at a peripheral speed correspondmg to the linear rate of formation of laps 23, a suitable variable speed drive unit 35 is provided. Likewise, in order to unwind packages 32 at a peripheral speed corresponding to the rate of linear uncoiling of individual laps 23 at the intake of the breaker drawing unit 11, a second variable speed drive 35a is provided. Similarly, variable speed drives 35b and 350 are provided at the intake of finisher drawing unit 12 and spinning unit 13 respectively, and variable speed units 35d and 35s at the delivery sides of units 11 and 12 respectively. The units 35 and 3511 through 35:: are identical and conventional, the identical parts of the several units being designated by like reference characters respectively. Unit 35 comprises tapered pulleys 36 and 37 upon which connecting belt 38 is mounted, said pulley 37 being driven by motor 39 through intermediate gear reduction unit 40. The rate at which pulley 37 drives pulley 36 and the take-up arbor 36 is controlled by belt shifter 41 which is reciprocated longitudinally of the pulleys at a predetermined rate by control unit 42. As the gang package 32 increases in diameter, the belt 38 will be shifted from the larger to the smaller end of pulley 37 to thereby vary the speed of pulley 36 at a rate inversely proportional to the diameter of the package and which will impart uniform linear speed to strip 28 and laps 23.

After several strands of sliver are passed respectively from carding machines 10, formed into coil laps 23, and helically wound into a multiple or gang package 32, these laps are unwound and subjected to a breaker drawing process wherein the coils of the respective laps are simultaneously uncoiled reversely of their direction of coiling, passed between sets of drafting rolls 45, and condensed into a single strand 18a at the delivery side of machine 11 (FIGURE 2). This single strand 18a is then drawn through coiler head of apparatus 11, formed into a lap 23a of overlapping coils, and wound into a package 32a in substantially the same manner as previously described in connection with the formation of package 32 at the delivery end of carding machine 10. Where it is desired that package 32a contain multiple laps, it is of course necessary to supply the packaging strip with as many condensed strands 18a in coiled formation as shown in FIGURE 2.

Strip or belt 28 is unwound at a uniform linear speed from package 32 at the intake of drawing apparatus 11, and in timed relationship to the unwinding or extension of lap coils 19, this timed relationship being controlled by another variable speed drive 35a which is identical to the one previously described. Both the coils 19 and the package 32 are unwound reversely of their directions of windings. Preferably, the relative rates of unwinding should be such that the coils of lap 23 successively approach and reach unwinding position at the precise moment they are extended or withdrawn from the lap, thereby maintaining a fixed point of withdrawal of the coils from the lap without disturbing the relative positions of the coils within the lap.

Several laps 23a are incorporated into each of the packages 32a at the delivery end of apparatus 11 by a mechanism similar to and in a similar manner to that employed in the formation of previously described package 32.

The respective coils of the several laps 23a in package 32a are then uncoiled simultaneously and reversely of their directions of coiling and fed respectively to several sets of drawing rolls of finisher drawing machine 12, where the strands are condensed into a single strand 18b. For purposes of illustration, six sets of rolls 45 of unit 11 are shown schematically and arranged side-by-side (FIG- URE 2), each set being adapted to receive six sliver strands 18 coiled into six laps 23 which, in turn, are helically wound into a cylindrical package 32. For the purpose of conserving floor space, other well-known arrangements may be desirable for feeding the six packages 32 to the breaker drawing machine 11, one such arrangement being illustrated in my copending application Serial No. 326,179 and comprising a conventional lapping machine wherein the laps may be positioned in parallel rows which are spaced apart at any desired distance regardless of the size of the respective machines from which the spaced laps are received. Strand 18b, along with several other identical strands 13b passing from other sets of rolls 50, are respectively passed through coiler heads 25), deposited into laps 23b, and wound into gang packages 32b, employing substantially the same method and apparatus as used to form package 32a.

The sliver strands 2312 are now packaged and ready for spinning. In this process, the strand coils are simultaneously unwound from their respective laps reversely of their directions of coiling and in timed relation with the bodily advancement of the lap toward uncoiling position as previously described in connection with the unwinding of rolls 32 and 32a. The unwound strands 18b are fed respectively between sets for spinning roll bosses 52 of spinning machine or frame 13, these strands emerging from the spinning process as spun strands 18c which are wound upon bobbins or yarn holders 54.

The arrows 55 in FIGURE 2A illustrate the direction of fiber extension relative to strand 18 as it emerges from carding apparatus 16 It is here seen that the loose ends of the fibers point toward end A of the strand. The direction or" fiber extension is reversed when strand 18a emerges from breaker drawing apparatus 11, the arrows 55 pointing toward end B of the strand. The direction of fiber extension is again reversed as strand 18b emerges from finisher drawing machine 12, the direction of fiber extension as indicated by arrows now being the same as when the sliver emerged from carding machine it). This feature has been found of critical significance in producing sliver with a low coefiicient of variation and in producing yarn 18b of optimum quality. The elimination of the roving step in the processing of sliver into a spun strand has made it possible to condition the sliver for spinning at the termination of an odd process including the carding process, thereby orienting the fibers in the most desirable direction for spinning.

FIGURES 5 and 5A through 5D illustrate diagrammatically how the roving process heretofore employed leaves the sliver fibers improperly oriented inasmuch as the roving process immediately preceding spinning is an even numbered process.

In such conventional processes, cans are employed to package the sliver emerging from each of the carding, breaker drawing, and finisher drawing processes, while the sliver emerging from the roving machine is twisted and wound upon yarn holders of a manageable size for spinning. In contrast, applicant substitutes packages of coil laps wound into packages for the conventional cans formerly used in association with the carding, breaker drawing and finisher drawing machines, and also entirely eliminates the roving step so as to properly orient the sliver fibers for introduction to the spinning frame.

In the conventional processes employing sliver cans, the sliver strand is deposited in coiled formation within a vertical can, the coils overlapping to form a lap or layer which is spirally wound edgewise into the can, said lap having a width of less than one-half the inside diameter of the can in under center coiling and greater than one-half in over center coiling.

Concurrently with the deposit of these superimposed spiraled layers of the coil lap into the can is a variation in the layer density, the fiber mass having a greater density near the center of the can and a progressively decreasing density as the mass diameter increases. This unequal density is caused by spirally winding the coil. lap edgcwise within the can which compacts the fibers at the center of the lap coil and loosens the mass at the outer portion thereof. Moreover, when this vertical mass within the can is compressed so that it will assume an exterior cylindrical shape, the central portion of the mass is sometimes so severely compressed as to cause matting, marrying and felting and thereby causing damage to the sliver strand and increasing the number of breakages in subsequent processes. Applicant secures substantially uniform density in the package by the novel method of winding, and furthermore prevents matting and felting of the fibers through the use of strip or belt 28 to separate the lap coils which are wound transversely of the coil diameters into .a package rather than wound edgewise in the planes of the coil diameters as in the conventional can packaging.

By packaging sliver according to this invention, the' packages are of manageable size at the termination of the drawing processes and ready for spinning, thus eliminating the conventional roving process as well as the objectionable twist in the sliver incident thereto.

To prevent matting, marrying and felting of the fibers, the arbor 31 (FIGURE 4) is made from a core of cardboard, fiber or plastic and of 6 to 10 inches in diameter to gently group the coils or ringlets 19 and facilitate free and easy retracting of the frail and tender sliver during subsequent processes. Such a core will also be necessary so as to be removable to and from winding and unwinding positions.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

I claim:

1. That method of processing a plurality of textile sliver strands which comprises the steps of:

(a) coiling each strand into a series of coils while moving the latter transversely of the axis of coil generation to produce respective elongated layers of overlapped coils;

(b) helically winding said layer of coils into a roll;

(c) uncoiling and imparting a draft in one direction to the fibers of a plurality of said rolls of coiled and wound slivers while unwinding them from said rolls to thereby form .a second strand;

(d) coiling said drafted strand into an elongated layer of serially overlapped coils;

(e) helically winding said elongated layer into a second roll;

(f) uncoiling and imparting a second draft in the opposite direction to said first draft to the fibers of the slivers of a plurality of said second rolls while unwinding said second rolls to thereby form a third strand;

(g) coiling said third strand into an elongated layer of serially overlapped coils;

(h) winding said last-named layer into a third roll,

and

=(i) uncoiling and imparting a third draft to the fibers of said third strand in the same direction as said first draft simultaneously with unwinding the strand from the third roll and with spinning of the third strand into a yarn.

2. That method of processing a plurality of textile sliver strands which comprises the steps of:

(a) imparting a draft in one direction to the fibers of a plurality of said strands to thereby form a second strand;

(b) coiling said drafted strand into a series of coils while moving the latter transversely of the axis of coil generation to produce an elongated layer of overlapped coils;

(c) helically winding said layer of coils into a roll;

(d) uncoiling and imparting a second draft in the opposite direction to said first draft to the fibers of the slivers of a plurality of said rolls while unwinding them from the rolls to thereby form a third strand;

(e) coiling said third strand into an elongated layer of serially overlapped coils;

(f) \ctlvinding said last-named layer into a second roll,

(g) uncoiling and imparting a third draft in the same direction as said first draft simultaneously with unwinding the strand from the second roll.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,418,995 4/1947 Thomas et al. 1965 X 2,829,421 4/1958 Hanson 57151 X 2,882,673 4/1959 Buddecke 28-21 X 3,000,059 9/1961 Russo et al. 19-66 3,120,689 2/1964 Drummond 28-21 X FOREIGN PATENTS 2,874 1856 Great Britain.

DONALD W. PARKER, Primary Examiner.

D. N. NEWTON, Assistant Examiner. 

1. THE METHOD OF PROCESSING A PLURALITY OF TEXTILE SLIVER STRANDS WHICH COMPRISES THE STEPS OF: (A) COILING EACH STRAND INTO A SERIES OF COILS WHILE MOVING THE LATTER TRANSVERSELY OF THE AXIS OF COIL GENERATION TO PRODUCE RESPECTIVE ELONGATED LAYERS OF OVERLAPPED COILS; (B) HELICALLY WINDING SAID LAYER OF COILS INTO A ROLL; (C) UNCOILING AND IMPARTING A DRAFT IN ONE DIRECTION TO THE FIBERS OF A PLURALITY OF SAID ROLLS OF COILED AND WOUND SLIVERS WHILE UNWINDING THEM FROM SAID ROLLS TO THEREBY FORM A SECOND STRAND; (D) COILING SAID DRAFTED STRAND INTO AN ELONGATED LAYER OF SERIALLY OVERLAPPED COILS; (E) HELICALLY WINDING SAID ELONGATED LAYER INTO A SECOND ROLL; (F) UNCOILNG AND IMPARTING A SECOND DRAFT IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION TO SAID FIRST DRAFT TO THE FIBERS OF THE SLIVERS OF A PLURALITY OF SAID SECOND ROLLS WHILE UNWINDING SAID SECOND ROLLS TO THEREBY FORM A THIRD STRAND; (G) COILING SAID THIRD STRAND INTO AN ELONGATED LAYER OF SERIALLY OVERLAPPED COILS; (H) WINDING SAID LAST-NAMED LAYER INTO A THIRD ROLL, AND (I) UNCOILING SAID IMPARTING A THIRD DRAFT TO THE FIBERS OF SAID THIRD STRAND IN THE SAME DIRECTION AS SAID FIRST DRAFT SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH UNWINDING THE STRAND FROM THE THIRD ROLL AND WITH SPINNING OF THE THIRD STRAND INTO A YARN. 